The pain-depression dyad and the association with sleep dysfunction in chronic rhinosinusitis

Background: Depression, pain, and sleep disturbance is a symptom cluster often found in patients with chronic illness, exerting a large impact on quality of life (QOL). A wealth of literature exists demonstrating a significant association between depression, pain, and sleep dysfunction in other chronic diseases. This relationship has not been described in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS).

Methods: Sixty-eight adult patients with CRS were prospectively enrolled. Patients at risk for depression were identified using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) using a cut-off score of ≥1. Pain experience was measured using the Brief Pain Inventory Short Form (BPI-SF) and the Short Form McGill Pain Questionnaire (SF-MPQ). Sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI).

Results: Forty-seven patients were at risk for depression. Significant positive correlations were found between total PSQI scores and all pain measures (R = 0.38-0.61, p ≤ 0.05) and between total PSQI scores and PHQ-2 scores (R = 0.46, p < 0.05). For patients at risk for depression, significant, positive correlations were found between pain measures, the total PSQI score, and the 3 PSQI subdomains (sleep latency, sleep quality, and daytime dysfunction; R = 0.31-0.61, p < 0.05). The relationship between pain and sleep dysfunction scores was not seen in the absence of depression.

Conclusion: Depression, pain, and sleep dysfunction are interrelated in patients with CRS. In the absence of depression, significant correlations between pain and sleep are not observed, suggesting that depression plays a key role in this interaction. Further research is needed to investigate the complex relationship between depression, pain, and sleep dysfunction in CRS.